MILFORD, Pa. – Just two months before he was assassinated, President John F. Kennedy visited Milford.

On Sept. 24, 1963, Kennedy dedicated as a historic landmark the ancestral home of Gifford Pinchot, a two-term Pennsylvania governor and the first chief of the U.S. Forest Service.

Starting Thursday, Grey Towers National Historic Site — derived from the name of the Pinchot family estate — will hold four days of commemorative events.

While all presidential visits are noteworthy, Kennedy’s trip to Milford takes on added significance due to what would happen just 59 days later. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, on Nov. 22, 1963, and numerous tributes and historic programs are planned this fall to mark the 50th anniversary of his death.

Those greeting Kennedy on the grounds of the 102-acre estate in Milford, of course, would have had no inkling that the “New Frontier,” as outlined by Kennedy in his 1961 inauguration speech, was nearing a tragic conclusion.

Gregory, a lifelong Milford resident, was among the volunteer firefighters on hand in case of an emergency. Kennedy used a helicopter for the 45-mile ride from Newburgh, N.Y., to Milford.

“Helicopters weren’t that plentiful in those days,” Gregory said.

As seen in a video, Kennedy landed in the field near Grey Towers and was driven in an open convertible — not the same vehicle used in Dallas, but offering an eerily similar visual — to the platform. First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy was not with him.

Pennsylvania Gov. William Scranton, who died July 28 at age 96, joined Kennedy on the platform.

Kennedy’s speech, which began at 1 p.m., was the kickoff of a five-day conservation tour in 11 states.

The president offered effusive praise for Pinchot, an advocate for conservation who died in 1946 at age 81. He was named chief of the Forest Service in 1905 by President Theodore Roosevelt, a post he held for five years.

In dedicating the Pinchot Institute for Conservation, Kennedy issued a call for action that, 50 years later, finds an echo in the current political debate over environmentalism.

“We are reaching the limits of our fundamental needs — of water to drink, of fresh air to breathe, of open space to enjoy, of abundant sources of energy to make life easier,” Kennedy said, according to a transcript provided by Grey Towers.

“The American people are not by nature wasteful. They are not unappreciative of our inheritance. But unless we, as a country, with the support, and sometimes the direction, of government, working with state leaders, working with the community, working with all our citizens, we are going to leave an entirely different inheritance in the next 25 years than the one we found,” Kennedy said.

“What Gifford Pinchot pioneered is now accepted, and no one maintains that this can be left merely to chance in the future,” Kennedy said, adding that conservation “is the job of us all.”

Gregory was maybe 30 to 40 feet from Kennedy, and never met him, though he said he was visible in the background of a photo featuring the president.

“He was very charming,” Gregory said.

On Nov. 22, 1963, Gregory, at the time working for a car dealership, was returning from a business trip when he learned of Kennedy’s death.

Expressing a universal sentiment from the day, Gregory said his immediate reaction was almost to disbelieve what he had heard.

The four-day commemoration at Grey Towers will be highlighted by the rededication of the Pinchot Institute on Saturday.

Allison Stewart, director of Grey Towers, said, “I look forward to welcoming everyone to the commemoration of the gift of Grey Towers to the American public and celebrating the legacy of Gifford Pinchot.”

For a schedule of events this coming weekend, which includes a free open house at the Grey Towers National Historic Site Saturday afternoon and Sunday, visit www.greytowers.org or call 570-296-9630.